Ye shid never tie a kettle tull a big dog's tail, [should Nor tak' a drink o' water fae a bucket or a pail [from An' it's plain tae un'erstan'in as a bawbee for a bap, [halfpenny; bun That the reedest cheekit aipples aye are gotten at the tap. [reddest; top A laddie aince pit snuff in his aul' grannie's tay, [once; put; tea But he drank it up himsel before he notice't, so they say;An' I'll wager tippence happeny tho' it's a' I ca' my ain, [call, own That the nickum never tigget wi' her sneeshin mill again. [rogue; tampered; snuff mill

O ye never saw a rickle like my aul' horse Dobbin [bag of bones Ye could hing up yer jecket on her hurdies; [haunches He wis broken in the wind an' fin he begood tae rin [began; run He rais't a racket like a dizzen hurdy-gurdies. [made a noise I took 'im tae the mairket and a swappit fair ower [traded for Wi' a Balaclava chairger fae the sooth, man; An' I didnae wait the blockin-ale tho' I wis unca dry, [wait for the drink to seal the deal For fear they might be fin'in' oot the truth, man.

I thocht that I hid fairly deen a smairt trick noo, [really done But sic a coupin' ower the tail I never did expeck, [overturning Fae a fraisy aul' mannie wi a roly-poly facie, [gift o the gab Like a ginge-breed rabbit, wi' a cloot roon's neck. [gingerbread, cloth For I gaed tae the mairket, an' I swappit, d'ye see,My ain aul' Dobbin that was blin' on an e'e; [blind in one eye But I cam fae the mairket as drouthy as a saith, [dry; coalfish Wi' a fiddle-heedit jigger that was blin' upo' them baith. [long-headed oddity

Number 1220 in the Greig~Duncan Folk Song Collection. The tune is given by Thomson as "The Girl I Left Behind Me" for the verse and "The White Cockade" for the chorus. Sung by Adam McNaughtan on _Folk Songs of North-East Scotland ? Songs from the Greig~Duncan Folk Song Collection_, Greentrax Recordings, 1995 (It's amazing how much better Thomson's songs sound when you hear them sung by someone who understands them then when you just read them.)

Get a copy of the lyrics right in front of you. Turn on Jock Duncan, or George Thomson and listen about 25 times without the words, then another 25 with the lyrics right in front of you and I bet you could sing a mean verse or two of it. Have your recorded it Abby?